


i can be the one.

by vantas



Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Canon Universe, Developing Friendships, Extended Scene, Gen, Introspection, POV Female Character, Ride or Die at First Sight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-21 19:55:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17049578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vantas/pseuds/vantas
Summary: It begins like this:An advertisement.  A pint of donated blood.  One recruiter's overbearing enthusiasm as they all but force her to drop everything, promising the career of a lifetime.Or: Moments in time shared between Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash Kyrielight.





	i can be the one.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [labocat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/labocat/gifts).



> 17/12/18 — This is, admittedly, a crude mishmash of OVA, stage play _and_ game canon in order to construct a coherent backstory and personality for Ritsuka. Did it work? It is a mystery. Was binging several hours of F/GO content while writing this fun? Absolutely. Regardless, I hope this fic finds you well! May the gacha gods bless you on this holiday season by bringing your faves home. :')
> 
> (On that note: Solomon spoilers are present in this fic. English F/GO players beware if you haven't been spoiled yet, since we're all probably going to be in raid boss hell at the time that this fic goes public.)

**01 — It begins like this:**

An advertisement. A pint of donated blood. One recruiter's overbearing enthusiasm as they all but force her to drop everything, promising the career of a lifetime in exchange for leaving her entire life behind.

Ritsuka thinks little of it at the time. She rolls with the punches. She accepts the hand that life deals her. She sees an opportunity, and simply jumps headfirst into it. Uprooting her existence is far from the most outrageous thing she's done since gaining an iota of independence, after all. Packing her bags and traveling 3,437 miles up north after discovering that she is, _apparently_ , a magus, seems up to par with everything else she's done in the history of forever.

She wishes she had thought a little bit more about it when she finds herself holding a dying girl's hand, the remnants of summer going up in flames along with all of mankind. The world burns around them, taking and taking and taking — until there's nothing left but six digits worth of square footage and a skeleton crew of very terrified, very distressed human beings.

Mash Kyrielight's hand feels so horribly delicate within her grasp. Even so, the girl smiles at her like Ritsuka had delivered the world to her while Mash had nothing but broken glass and soggy newspaper to offer in return. "I'm so sorry, Senpai," she whispers, her fingers spasming briefly. "If it hadn't been for me, you could have..."

Ritsuka's hands ache. The heat makes every gulp of breath feel less like a necessity, and more like a punishment. Blood seeps into her black stockings as it slowly pools out of Mash's crushed lower body. Their only means of escape have long since been blocked off, Chaldea slipping into an emergency lockdown in order to prevent the fire from spreading throughout the building. Romani had urged her to get the heck out of Dodge as quickly as possible, _sure_ , but the preservation of her own life stopped being a priority the moment she saw Mash sticking out from underneath a chunk of debris.

Despite all of this, however, she cannot find it within herself to regret her current situation.

If anything, she's just relieved that Mash doesn't have to be alone at the end.

"It's okay," she responds, tone gentle even as she slowly starts to lose her grip on reality. The smoke, the heat, and the buildup of carbon monoxide. Ritsuka may be many things, but she's not naive. She knows that she won't be making it out of this room alive. Still, she squeezes Mash's hand and twists the truth into something that could potentially offer a cheap modicum of comfort. "We'll figure something out. I promise."

It's a lie, obviously.

There's no time to figure anything out.

As cruel as it may be, the only way they're escaping this room is via a pair of body bags — assuming there's enough left of them once the fire has run its course. She's pretty sure that Mash is sensible enough to realize this on her own, as well, but she doesn't say anything to contradict Ritsuka's statement. Their hands slot nicely together, Mash's delicate fingers squeezing back with as much force as they can muster. Ritsuka rubs her thumb over Mash's knuckles, the oppressive heat distorting her senses until she thinks she can see a bruise forming on the back of her hand.

Mash closes her eyes.

"... Thank you, Senpai."

( _"—Beginning Spiritron conversion."_ ) 

And then the world around them is no more.

* * *

**02 — They survive.**

But it's not without a cost.

Director Olga Marie is dead. Professor Lev is a traitor. Chaldea is in shambles. The end of the world is upon them.

Somehow, it's Ritsuka's responsibility to fix all of this before humanity is truly and honestly fucked.

(Just, you know, _no pressure_.)

Her legs feel less like they're made out of flesh and bone, and more like they're two delicately crafted barbecue skewers coated in gelatin. Her entire body still aches from pushing her previously unused magic circuits to the limit. Her heart is jackhammering against her ribcage, beating away in a staccato rhythm as she tries to get a grip on the situation. Under any other circumstances, someone could argue that it would be _responsible_ of her to pass this duty onto someone else who is better qualified. Someone who's been born and raised in the world of magecraft, as opposed to a random outsider they picked off the streets of Japan in order to fluff up their numbers.

Unfortunately for every single remaining member of mankind, there is no such person.

Ritsuka is as good as it's going to get.

The command seals on the back of her hand are irrefutable proof of that.

(But it's not like Ritsuka considered, even for a minute, backing out of this. It's a choice between living and dying. A choice between giving up on the future, and fighting so everyone she cherishes can live to see the year 2017. Uncharted territory is terrifying. The uncertainty of whether you have the capabilities needed for the task, even more so.

However, there is something that outweighs her doubts and fear.)

"Good morning, Senpai."

(The desire to fight side-by-side with a girl who, just like her, will now live in a dubious state of existence.)

" _Mash,_ " she responds, joy and relief and gratitude all blatantly apparent in her tone as she rushes up to her. Ritsuka's entire being feels like it's been put through the grinder. No amount of rest seems like it's capable of fixing that. However, that doesn't stop her from reaching over to grip Mash's hand in her own for the third time in less than twenty-four hours. "Good morning! I'm so happy that you're okay."

Mash smiles at her. It's a wonderful, beautiful thing. It is not the weak, tragic smile of a girl who lays on the floor waiting for death's cold embrace. It's the smile of a girl who protected her companions through sheer strength of character, and would gladly do so again as many times as it takes. Still, this doesn't stop Mash from shaking her head, huffing out a laugh that seems entirely directed at herself.

"It's because of you that we were able to make it out alive," she says, squeezing her hand like she isn't speaking absurdities. "Thank you."

"No way," Ritsuka quickly replies. "All I did was stand around and yell... You're the one who got us out of there with our lives. You were amazing!"

And maybe it's a side-effect of the contract they've formed as Master and Servant. Maybe it's the natural result of being thrust into an unreasonable situation together, forced to create miracles with little to no field experience. Whatever the case — this is comfortable. Intertwining their fingers together. Singing praises for her newfound kouhai. It feels _natural_.

Watching Mash get flustered feels pretty darn natural, too. It's a little bit funny, even, to see her try to throw her praise back at her life both of their lives depend on it. Ritsuka has only known Mash for a little under twenty-four hours, and yet, it's like she's reuniting with an old friend.

From a couple of steps away, Romani Archaman clears his throat.

And just like that, the reunion ends.

* * *

**03 — Days turn into weeks.**

Weeks turn into months.

Little by little, the incineration of humanity creeps closer, one Singularity at a time.

And with it, Ritsuka's perception of human history gets thoroughly trampled on.

Da Vinci has the gall to laugh at them after she's returned from sailing the seas with Francis Drake, thoroughly queasy — but only because of the unfortunate selection in Servants she had to cross paths with.

"Aha, I thought you'd brighten up as soon as you saw your wonderful Da Vinci-chan!" Da Vinci says, knowing _fully well_ why she looks like she bit on something sour while debriefing. "What's wrong?"

Mash (wonderful, amazing, thoughtful Mash) places a hand on her shoulder, giving her a flimsy smile. "It's okay, Senpai," she says, kindly. "Da Vinci's just teasing."

Somewhere in the background, Fou squeaks.

It sounds a little bit like a laugh, too.

* * *

**04 — Mash, as it turns out, has a bad habit of being to harsh on herself.**

In response, Ritsuka makes it her mission to pile on as much praise as humanly possible at every given opportunity.

_"You're amazing, Mash!"_

And—

_"Thank you, Mash."_

And—

_"It's all because you were here to save me, Mash."_

And so forth.

Little by little, Mash denies it less.

Little by little, Mash accepts her praise, lips twisting into a shy smile as she visibly _preens._

Ritsuka can never claim to understand the type of life Mash has led up until now.  She can't imagine a world where her entire existence is confined within a single building, forever and ever with no hope of escape.  It makes the little details feel a little bit more coherent.  It makes those hints and bits of behavior she previously brushed off feel like they're part of a bigger puzzle.  But even so, there is one thing that Ritsuka _does_ understand wholeheartedly.

_"You're so strong, Mash."_

It's not praise for the sake of praise.

It's not a statement uttered for the sake of boosting her friend's self-esteem, hoping that she will realize how much Ritsuka values her.

It's the truth.  No padding.  No hyperbole.  Nothing.

* * *

**05 — The end of the world arrives before she knows it.**

And with it, comes the final scene to this story.

It's only fitting that it ends how it all began.

The world crumbling to dust around her.  Death looming over her shoulder, every breath she takes feeling more like a punishment and less like a necessity.  Mash, Romani, the servants she allied with throughout her travels — they're all _gone_.  And now it's just her and the void that threatens to consume her.

It's not a bad way to go, though.

Humanity will live to see another day.  Da Vinci and the staff at Chaldea will make sure that the future is preserved.   Even though she's going to die here, she can't bring herself to regret her last moments.

She's just relieved she achieved what she sought out to do.

Ritsuka closes her eyes.

( _"—Senpai, stretch out your hand!  Please, your hand!"_ )

And when she opens them again, she finds herself holding a living girl's hand as all of existence flourishes around them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**06 — She finds Mash in Romani's room.**

It's immaculately clean, of course. Not because the doctor himself had a penchant for fastidious tidiness, but because Mash would never allow him to return to a filthy room. Even though he's been gone for a while, there's not a single speck of dust to be found. It's almost like someone has been living here this entire time, and Ritsuka has been unlucky enough to miss them every time she walks down the hallway.

If only that were the truth, though.

That would be nice.

Mash is bent over a twelve by twelve inch box, carefully placed on top of Doctor Roman's old desk. Ritsuka doesn't need to ask what it's for because, _well_ , all of Chaldea is packing up in order to make room for the new staff members. Even the personal belongings of those who are no longer with them must be removed from the premises, no matter how distressing the act may be for those who were left behind. It's easy to pretend that someone is only away for a day or two when their living spaces are still intact.

It's infinitely harder to do so when one has to clean up after them because they're no longer physically around to do so.

The sound of the automated door is loud enough to inform Mash of her presence. Ritsuka remains quiet as she makes her way across the room, every single word she had planned to say disintegrating before they can even make their way past her lips. In the end, she up standing an awkward forty-five centimeters away from her. Not close enough to provide comfort. Not far away to provide space. But just at the _right_ distance to witness how the remnants of one person's existence can be neatly organized into a single cardboard box.

Once it's taped up and put away, it'll be like no one ever lived here at all.

The thought makes her stomach churn unpleasantly, so she quickly discards it in order to focus on those who were able to reach the future.

"... Da Vinci said I could find you here," she says, quietly, scratching at a stray piece of lint that seems to have gotten stuck to her stockings. It's the truth, if one considers Da Vinci's rant about _the main character needing to comfort her amazing kouhai_ more of a friendly suggestion and less of a shove for Ritsuka to stop being afraid of hurting Mash. "But I can go if I'm intruding," she adds, far too quickly. "I know that the doctor—"

"—No," Mash cuts her off, quickly and _firmly_. Her eyes are glued to the box in front of her, hands balled into fists at the hem of her skirt. "It's... It's okay, Senpai. I'm sorry. I should have gone looking for you."

Ritsuka shakes her head, despite the fact that Mash isn't looking at her. "No, no," she replies, reaching over. Hand lingering in the air. Settling on laying it down on the edge of the desk, close enough to Mash to feel like she can be helpful but distant enough that she doesn't feel like she's intruding on something private. "You're always calling me Senpai. So isn't it the senpai's job to make sure her kouhai is okay?"

"But, still—" Mash responds, lifting her gaze from the box _just_ enough that they can make eye contact with each other. "I haven't asked what you're going to do after this.  Will you be returning to Japan?  I'd like to have your address, if you are."

"Well... I don't know about that yet,"  Ritsuka says, honestly.  It's not something she's given much thought to.  All she knows is that the thought of going back home after everything she's experienced, leaving Mash and the friends she's made behind — it feels alien and bizarre. "But more importantly, do you need help cleaning up?"

The linoleum floor is spotless.  There is not a single hint of dirt on the ground.  Not an itty, bitty crumb of leftover cake to be found.  Ninety-five percent of Roman's belongings have been shoved into a twelve by twelve inch box that will never be opened again once it's shut.  The items that are leftover are either too big to fit into that box, or are perishable items that need to be consumed or thrown away.   Finishing up is a one person job.  Two people is too many.

Still, Mash pauses. 

Thinks about it like this is something that needs careful consideration.

(Or, maybe, she pauses because accepting her help would mean that it will all be over more quickly.  That reality will cover every nook and cranny of this room once and for all.  That, in the end, there are some things that cannot be erased from history.)

When her hands reach up to pick up the box, her right hand momentarily brushes against the tip of Ritsuka's index finger.

"... Yes, I do.  Thank you, Senpai."

Mash's hand feels cold and clammy.

(The world is no longer burning around them.  History has given the future back to them, even while it's been taken away from others.  There's really no replacing the people they've all lost.

But Ritsuka has made it through pain and heartbreak and death once already.  Mash, even more so.

They can do it again.)


End file.
